“Quiet quitting,” a workplace term for doing only the minimum required, is increasingly being used to describe a troubling pattern within some marriages. A spouse may remain in the relationship while steadily withdrawing emotional effort, communication and involvement.

From the outside, daily life may appear unchanged because the couple continues handling household responsibilities and parenting. However, relationship experts say one partner can become emotionally and physically disengaged while the marriage continues.

The term has gained traction across social media, where users have shared posts and videos about staying married despite feeling checked out. The withdrawal may be subtle, particularly when conflict has also disappeared from the relationship.

Licensed marriage and family therapist Lisa Brookes Kift, of Marin Therapy and Counseling in California, told Fox News Digital that a noticeable absence of friction can serve as an early warning sign. A marriage without arguments is not automatically a healthy one, she said.

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Some people avoid conflict rather than address difficult feelings, according to Kift. Over time, repeatedly sweeping those feelings aside can erode the emotional safety at the foundation of a relationship.

A person’s attachment style can also influence how marital distress is handled. Kift described attachment style as the patterns through which people seek support and closeness in relationships.

Someone with an avoidant attachment style may be more comfortable staying in their own lane and relying on themselves while the relationship deteriorates. Meanwhile, people with a more secure attachment style may be less willing to remain in that dynamic.

Secure partners may be more inclined to give a spouse the benefit of the doubt and believe that their problems can be addressed. However, reactions to marital distress can also reflect lessons formed through earlier experiences.

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According to Kift, experiences involving trust, worthiness and whether emotional needs were met can help shape these patterns. Those lessons may affect how someone approaches closeness, disappointment and emotional strain later in life.

“What did they learn about whether their needs would be met? Whether the most important people to them could be trusted? That they were lovable for who they were and not what they did?” Kift asked.

When an adult relationship appears to repeat early disappointments, a partner may begin losing hope. Kift said she has encountered people in her therapy practice who adopted this position following unsuccessful attempts to have emotional and other needs met.

“I’ve seen quite a few people in my therapy practice who have taken this stance, where there have been failed attempts to get emotional and other needs met, leading to hopelessness,” Kift said.

Several changes can indicate that a spouse is becoming emotionally disengaged. These include reduced communication, unresolved arguments, increasing impatience and a tendency to assume the worst about a partner’s intentions instead of offering the benefit of the doubt.

If these problems remain unaddressed, the marriage can move toward what journalist Monica Corcoran Harel called “parallel play” on Oprah’s podcast. The expression refers to toddlers playing beside each other without meaningfully engaging, reflecting how spouses can share a home while becoming emotionally separate.

Repair requires both spouses to become involved again, according to Kift. That process can be especially difficult when one partner has already become deeply detached and no longer wants to participate.

“If one has fully checked out, they will not be open to repair,” Kift said. She added that remaining constantly on guard for pain or disappointment can prevent a spouse from recognizing positive changes made by the other partner.

For couples who are prepared to work on their marriage, Kift recommended beginning with a conversation that communicates both care and emotional safety. The approach should make the importance of the relationship clear while inviting the other spouse to talk.

As one possible opening, she suggested saying: “I know it may not have looked like it, but you and our marriage are very important to me. Can we find a time to sit down and talk?”